Lilo Mancia has been separated from his wife, Maria Briselda Amaya, who was deported to her native country of Honduras on March 6, 2007. Mr. Mancia stays behind with two small children, his youngest, Jeffery, a United States citizen. Although they were both arrested in an immigration raid in Massachusetts, at the Michael Bianco leather factory where they both worked, only she has been deported so far. Mr. Mancia is currently fighting his own deportation as he struggles to support his children on his own.
Lilo Mancia was the first to come to the United States, crossing through Laredo, Texas in 2005. His wife came later with their toddler, Kevin and was caught by the border patrol. But she applied for political asylum, though she this petition was eventually denied. Mr. Mancia and Ms. Amaya filed for political asylum because their neighborhood at home had been taken over by gangs, who “used the streets as a combat zone.” Ms. Amaya’s sister was shot and killed by a gang shooting while she was taking the bus home from Christmas shopping in 2003. Mr. Mancia recalls the horrors of the streets where they lived, claiming that one could easily walk down the street and walk over dead bodies who were victims of the gang violence. This reality was a motivating factor in their decision to leave and head to the United States.
After being separated from his mother, Jeffery, then two years old, became ill and had recurring earaches a loss of appetite because of an “acute sadness” according to Jaqueline Arieta, a nurse at the New Bedford Health Center. His older brother, Kevin, who was 5 at the time of the deportation asked for his mother repeatedly and according to his teacher Arthur Dutra refused to eat after the deportation of his mother.
Preston, Julia. “As Deportation Pace Rises, Illegal Immigrants Dig In” The New York Times. 1 May 2007. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/us/01deport.html
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